1/350 HMS Lion (1916) Jutland edition Public Review

[ModelFunShipyard]

Greetins fellow modellers,

2026 marks the 110th anniversary of the battle of Jutland. We would like to mark this occasion with the release of two different 1/350 sets, one from each side, in May and June respectively. Since the battle was fought during the course of 31 May and the early hours of 1 June 1916, we thought of this as fitting.
The first release, planned for late May, is going to be one of 'the splendid cats', HMS Lion, flagship of the 1st Battle Cruiser Squadron, and the battle cruiser fleet, at Jutland. The second release will, for now, remain a mystery
In the meantime we open the public review for Lion:

Sources for this build were John Roberts' Battlecruisers and R. H. Burt British Battleships of World War One.

[ChrisP]

Fantastic choice!
Two initial questions: Will you do a waterline version?
What will the approximate cost be?
Thanks!

[ModelFunShipyard]

Thank you! To answer your questions: yes, there will be a waterline version.
Approximate price is not for me to decide, that decision is with 3D-Wild, who are the manufacturers, but I don't think I'm too far off hazarding to guess it will be priced similarly to our previous Queen Mary: https://3d-wild.com/collections/warship ... -model-kit
And that ship is a half sister to the Lion class.

[iangazeley]

This is welcome news.
If you are modelling Lion at the time of Jutland, you'll need to add torpedo nets, rather than just the torpedo net booms.

[ModelFunShipyard]

We're not really sure how to do that. There already are products on the modelling market for that, it's a bit of a bother to have to have an add on, but they look far better than anything we could produce in 3D printed form, because they can actually be realistically rolled instead of looking very stiff and still.

[iangazeley]

Yes tricky to mould convincingly.

On the small calibre weapons, your renders show 4 x 3lb saluting guns on the rear boat deck upper walkway and a 6lb Hotchkiss? aft. By Jutland, all four 3lb guns had been removed (one was lost in a gale in August 1914 and the others removed in 1915 ), as had the Hotchkiss. They were replaced with 2 x 3 inch AA guns (after Jutland increased to 3 x 3 inch). I've been trying to determine where these were located. The Ships' Cover does not help here (unless I missed the entry). However, I have found a photographs that help with the two carried at Jutland. One shows the starboard 3 inch gun on the deck edge, but it it is difficult to place it on the ship from the photo. The photo is taken from the rear of the gun, and seems to show the torpedo net shelf that is flared in this region (originally supporting two boat davits) and a distinctive ventilation tube, which I can locate either side of the fore funnel on the boat deck. In another photo taken in November 1918, during the visit of Prince Higashi fushimi Yorihito, the breech of a small calibre gun in this position on the boat deck edge is just visible - so I'm convinced that these two guns were located either side of the fore funnel on the edge of the deck.

[ModelFunShipyard]

Thanks for pointing it out. On Burt's British Battleships it only says they were removed in 1915-16 but not the specific date. The other is not a Hotchkiss, the Hotchkiss was shielded. This is the 3'' HA mount. It may look somewhat rough in the render.
Burt only mentioned one 3'' AA installed between 1915-16 with the others in 1916-17, so I didn't know what to make of that.

I think I know what position you are referring to. There's a good picture of Princess Royal showing her carrying guns in those exact same position - by that time, Burt says they had been upgraded to 4'' weapons if memory serves - they are abreast of #1 and #2 funnel, in the former position where the forward boat shelf that was carried on davits was positioned, but removed at some point in 1915. Around below the boom of the side boat crane.

[JHS]

You need to do a better than the competition to do a genuine May 31, 1916 HMS Lion. Note: all the published plans are either wrong or for the ship prewar. The Burt plan is fine, but it is prewar. The famous Ough plan is a vast accumulation of inaccuracies. I searched the online NMM data bank for 1916 plans of Lion. There was only a prewar hold plan, and two general arrangement plans unavailable at this time.

---The rangefinder in the hood on top of the conning tower was not 15 foot, it was 9 foot, and the arms just peeked out of the sides of the hood.

---The spotting top's sides, the director's screen, and the compass platform screen were all padded with splinter mattresses.

---The height of the screens around the compass platform were approximately twice the height of the other bridge screens.

---The width of the torpedo net platform should be wider.

---The life line posts were not like ocean liner railings, thick and heavy. They need to be very fine.

---The spotting top in May 1916 had windows, like every battlecruiser in the fleet. It was not open as it was in 1914-15. The open spotting top used in the Dogger Bank battle in 1915 was extremely uncomfortable for the personnel. The screen on top of it was not heavy armor plate, but a canvas screen. The purpose of the canvas-screened position on top of the roof of the spotting top is unkown to me at this time. It might have been a "crow's nest."

---There were no boats of any kind between the two forward funnels. This area was an empty space.

---There were two 3-inch high-angle guns, one on each side of the forward superstructure. The 4-inch high angle gun you have on the after superstructure was fitted after Jutland.

---There were two large Carley rafts against the aft 4-inch gun screens, one on each side. There were probably two Carleys against the bridge structure.

---The forward bridge was more complicated than you show (you have basically the 1914 state). On the conning rower deck there were observation casemates for torpedo lookouts at the base of the bridge, and a shuttered structure below them.

---The rangefinder hood on top of Q turret was taller, and of a different shape than the rangefinder hoods on all the other turrets.

---The spotting top was square, not tapered.

I can prove all these things with photos taken shortly after the battle, and in the battle. The Wyllie paintings are a goldmine. He had access to the Battlecruiser Fleet throughout the war. His paintings of the Jutland ships was based on observation from life in Rosyth and Scapa Flow.

What you have now is of no use to produce an accurate Jutland Lion.

[Tracy White]

Will these actually be shipping in 2026, or merely be offered to order in 2026?

[JHS]

P.S. Are you modeling all decks as metal non-skid surfaces? If so this is an error. The weather deck was teak. The superstructure decks were Corticene, except for the compass platform, which was planked.

[ModelFunShipyard]

@JHS I did the best I could with what material I had. I knew Burt's plans were not 100% accurate, I hoped the list of modifications by both him and Roberts would suffice to render a decent representation. In any case, I thank you for your in depth analysis, I will carry out those modifications.

@Tracy White we will release the kit at the end of this month. As for when it'll be shipped out, you should ask 3D-Wild. I provide them the 3D work and an eventual release date, but the rest is managed by them. I'm positive though they will be able to ship these out before the end of the year.

[ModelFunShipyard]

Preview of things to come. I reckon it'll release in ten days or so

[FFG-7]

are the turret roofs stepped as shown in this attachment?

[ModelFunShipyard]

They are, it's just not well shown in the render. 3D-Wild will post better ones at release.

[FFG-7]

ok, thankyou.

[MartinJQuinn]

Preview of things to come. I reckon it'll release in ten days or so
Lion1916a.jpg

Two piece or three piece hull?

[ModelFunShipyard]

Two, of course. Everything below the size of an Essex class carrier we can print in only two parts. The problems are going to come in when we tackle the post war Essexes that aren't going to fit into the printers' beds.

[ModelFunShipyard]

FYI to my previous statement on the date of release: I've been informed it had to be postponed due to other issues, but only to mid June.